Icon, Symbol, Index: C.S. Peirce's Three Signs
TLDRThe speaker introduces three key terms - index, icon, and symbol - that will be important for understanding the idea of film as document. An index, like a photograph, shows evidence that something existed, while an icon resembles what it represents. A symbol has no resemblance to what it signifies; the relationship is arbitrary and cultural. The speaker explains how film theory has considered film indexical - it seems to document what existed before the camera - while other artforms like painting are iconic and words are symbolic. Distinguishing these terms lays groundwork to later examine why photography and film have been viewed as special for their indexical documentation of reality.
Takeaways
- 😊 The speaker introduces 3 important terms related to film theory - index, icon, and symbol
- 👍 An index shows evidence that something existed, like a footprint or photograph
- 😲 Icons resemble what they represent, like a painting of an apple
- 🤔 Symbols have an arbitrary relationship to what they represent, like the word "tree"
- 🧐 Early film theorists tied photography's status as a document to its indexical power
- 🚀 Indexicality explains why a photo provides evidence an apple existed
- 🖼 Film has been understood to have a special relationship to the index
- 🔍 Unlike paintings or words, film seems to document or provide evidence of what it shows
- 💡The philosopher C.S. Peirce categorized signs as indexes, icons or symbols
- 📝 Understanding these 3 types of signs helps explain notions of film as document
Q & A
What three important terms does the speaker want to introduce?
-The three important terms the speaker wants to introduce are: index, icon, and symbol.
Who is the philosopher that came up with the three categories of signs the speaker mentions?
-The philosopher who came up with the three categories of signs is American pragmatist philosopher C.S. Peirce.
What makes photography special according to early film theory?
-Early film theory tied photography's status as a document to its indexical powers - the idea that a photograph provides evidence that something existed in the physical world.
How does the speaker define an index?
-The speaker defines an index as a sign that shows evidence for the existence of what it refers to, like a footprint, weather vane, or bullet hole.
What is the definition of an icon?
-An icon is a sign that physically resembles or has a likeness to the thing it represents, like a figurative painting.
What connects a symbol to what it refers to?
-The connection between a symbol and what it refers to must be culturally learned, as there is no physical resemblance.
Why does the speaker use the word 'tree' as an example of a symbol?
-The speaker uses the word 'tree' as an example because the word has no inherent resemblance to the physical object - the connection between the sound or letters and the object is an arbitrary cultural convention.
How has film historically been understood in film theory?
-Film theory has historically understood film to have a special indexical relationship to the things it shows us, unlike media like paintings or words.
What evidence does film provide according to this theory?
-According to this theory, film provides evidence that the things it shows us existed in the physical world by way of its indexical powers.
Why does this concept matter for understanding film as document?
-This concept of indexicality matters for understanding film as document because it explains why we may believe a film provides documentation or proof of real things and events.
Outlines
🎥 Introducing three key terms: index, icon, and symbol
The paragraph introduces three important terms - index, icon, and symbol - that will be referenced throughout the week. It provides a preliminary explanation of each term, focusing on the index, which is connected to the idea that photographs have a special documentary status tied to their indexical relationship to the actual objects they depict.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡index
💡icon
💡symbol
💡sign
💡photography
💡document
💡pragmatism
💡semiotics
💡realism
💡ontology
Highlights
Introduces three important terms for understanding film and photography as documents: index, icon, and symbol
Index is a sign that shows evidence of something's existence, like a footprint or bullet hole
Photography's status as a document tied to its indexical power - it points to something real that existed
Icon is a sign that physically resembles what it represents, like a painting
Symbol has no resemblance to what it represents, like a word - the connection is cultural
Film theorized to have special indexical relationship to what it shows - provides evidence things existed
Introduces American pragmatist philosopher C.S. Peirce's three categories of signs
Photographic image seen as document tied to its precise, special way of showing something real existed
Index shows the evidence for existence of a particular material thing in the world
Icon has physical resemblance to the thing being represented, like in a painting
Symbol has no resemblance between signifier and signified, like words across languages
Film theorized as having indexical relationship to things shown, unlike painting or words
Film provides document of the thing it shows based on indexical relationship
Distinguishes index from icon and symbol to show film's special evidentiary status
Shows how film seen as proof of real things unlike representations in art or arbitrary words
Transcripts
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